Reactions
by TheComet63
Summary: Written for the Summer Comment Fixathon on Livejournal for the prompt "Other people's reactions upon finding out about A/K relationship"


**AN**: This is my reply to the Livejournal "The Good Wife summer comment fixation". The prompt was "Other people's reactions upon finding out about A/K relationship".

A friend of mine who read it argued that people aren't that much surprised but hey, if you see the show you realize that these two are way too obvious, so I figured it wouldn't be a shocking surprise. :p

Anyway, reviews are appreciated.

DISCLAIMER: As usual, I do not own anything, but I wish I did.

**REACTIONS**

They thought they were being careful, they didn't realize that they were leaving traces behind.

-o-

The first one to find out was Eli. Of course he was, Eli knew everything. (Actually, the first one to know had been Owen, because Alicia told him. He went on for half an hour with "good job sis!" and "welcome to the other team!". But still, Eli was the first one to find out on his own).

It's not like he usually followed Alicia, he only happened to spot her and Kalinda entering a residential building (Kalinda's place, he figured), kissing and laughing like two teenagers in love.

When he confronted Alicia about this, he only asked one question: "Are you planning on divorcing Peter?"

When Alicia shook her head, Eli only replied "Well, then."

And that was it.

-o-

The second one to figure it out had been Diane. She called Alicia in her office and she asked her to shut the door.

"I know we're not friends" she started. "So I'm pretty sure I'm not the first person you want to talk to about your personal life. But I need to know if this is going to affect your work here…and Kalinda's."

Alicia swore in her mind. How did Diane know? "Don't worry Diane. We'll be nothing but professional when it comes to work."

"I know." replied Diane. "I just wanted to make sure. Everything else is none of my business."

Alicia was halfway out the door when she turned around and asked Diane how did she found out.

Diane smirked. "I work late too sometimes."

Alicia felt like she wanted the earth to swallow her when she recalled that night a couple of days ago, when Kalinda was having her way with Alicia on her desk.

"I have to learn to be stronger and resist Kalinda." she thought. "No more sex in the office!"

-o-

The third one to realize it was Zach. It was impossible not to notice his mom's changes lately. She had been more relaxed, happier, somehow younger. So he immediately thought about an affair. And when Kalinda came to their place to work one sunday afternoon and she ended up staying for dinner, Zach knew.

"Mom…are you having an affair with Kalinda?" he asked Alicia that night, after Grace went to bed and Peter was in his room.

Alicia blushed and that was Zach's answer.

"I'm sorry." Alicia whispered. "I never meant for this to happen. I really wanted to make things work between me and your dad. But…"

Zack interrupted her with a tight hug. "It's ok, mom. I understand."

"Do you?" asked Alicia shocked. She didn't understand it in the first place, so how was it possible that her teenage son did?

Zach nodded. "Dad hurt you really bad. I can imagine that it was enough to make you fall out of love with him. And Kalinda is very…charming."

Alicia smiled to her son and held him close. In that moment she felt lucky and proud of her son.

"Grace's gonna freak out." said Zach before kissing her mom goodnight and going to sleep.

-o-

And Grace did freak out.

Thank god Peter had a campaign meeting that night, so he was out late and he wasn't there when Kalinda came over to Alicia's apartment to drop some files (or better, to see Alicia and steal a few kisses). And he wasn't there to hear Grace screaming when she caught her mother with Kalinda's tongue in her mouth while they were saying goodbye at the front door (they thought Grace was in her room, on the phone with her friend).

"How could you do this?" Grace shouted. "And with another woman! You're going to hell, mom! How could you do this to dad and to us?"

For a few moments, Alicia felt guilty. Then she realized she was the adult in there and she didn't have to explain to her daughter why, after months of platonic relationship, she finally decided to act on her feelings and started a relationship with Kalinda.

"I know you're upset Grace, and I'm sorry for that." Alicia was surprisingly calm when she spoke. "But this marriage isn't working anymore and it hasn't been for a very long time…and Kalinda makes me happy. I will tell your father soon, and I will stay with him through the campaign, but this has nothing to do with you or Zach. I love you both very much, you're the most important thing to me, whether I'm with your father or with someone else, man or woman."

"But this is a mortal sin!" protested Grace before leaving the living room and hiding into her room.

Alicia sighed. An hour later she could hear Zach talking to Grace. "Do you remember how older mom used to look after the scandal? Look at her now, she looks so much younger. And happier than she's ever been in a really long time. Kalinda is good for her. Why can't you accept it?"

Alicia once again felt incredibly proud of her son, and she knew that Grace only needed some time to accept the situation.

-o-

Will found out because he accidentally read a post-it Kalinda wrote Alicia. He wasn't one to snoop of course, but he was looking for a deposition and Alicia was in court that day, so he went to her office, knowing Alicia had left the documents he wanted on her desk. But probably Alicia didn't know that under the folder with the depositions, there was that post-it.

"Diane sent me out to look for some evidence, so I couldn't bring you coffee this morning. But we can have lunch in my bed, if I'm done early. I'll call you. Love, K."

It didn't take a science to understand the meaning behind that post-it. Alicia and Kalinda were having an affair.

Will started to connect the dots. The way the two women looked at each other, the way they always invaded each other's personal space, how they often left the firm together…and last but not least, the fact that Alicia had stopped a long time before to look at Will the way she used to.

He left Alicia's office with the documents folder in his hand and his heart broken.

-o-

Cary had a thing for Kalinda. It has always been obvious. So he used to watch her when she appeared in court.

He went to have a drink in a bar close to the court while waiting for the verdict to come in and he saw Alicia and Kalinda having a couple of shots of tequila. He wasn't close enough to hear what they were saying, but he could read Kalinda's lips when she said "You did good baby." and running her finger through Alicia's dark locks, earning a sweet smile in return.

He approached the two women with his usual grin. "So that's the reason why you always played favorite with her." he said to Kalinda, who froze.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

-o-

Kalinda's fears became true when Peter stormed into the apartment two nights later, with a piece of paper in his hand.

"Care to explain this?" he shouted to Alicia, after he kicked the bedroom's door closed, thinking this could prevent their kids from hearing what was about to go on.

Alicia looked at him without understanding, so Peter threw the sheet in front of her. Alicia read. It was an anonymous letter that asked Peter to resign himself from the campaign if he didn't want the press to know that his wife was having an affair with the in-house investigator of her law firm. Obviously, Cary told Childs, who used this new information to blackmail Peter.

"Is this true?" Peter asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes." said Alicia calmly. There was no point in denying it now.

"How long?"

Alicia couldn't lie. Not about this, not anymore. "Almost a year. You were in prison when it started. I wasn't planning on leaving you, not until the election, anyway."

"Well, there will be no election at this point." Peter was furious and hurt. "Is this some sort of revenge? You want to punish me for what I did by repaying me with the same coin?"

"Peter, you banged a hooker 18 times! A hooker! Someone you paid for sex when you had a wife at home!" Now Alicia was screaming as well. "This is not the same! Not even close!"

"So how many times did you bang her? More or less than 18?"

Alicia didn't reply.

There was a long silence between them, they were both breathing heavily and neither of them knew what to say to make it better. It was over, they both knew it.

"I'm in love with her, Peter." whispered Alicia after a while.

Peter sighed. "I'm gonna move out as soon as I find a new apartment. And I'll put Eli on to dig some dirt about Childs, so I can stay in the run without having you exposed. And after that, you're gonna wait for the divorce until after the election, and if I win I will need you by my side for the public eye. I'm only asking you that. Just…go to her tonight, I need to be alone without you around. I'll stay home with the kids."

Alicia nodded and thanked her husband. She got dressed and took the first cab to Kalinda's place.

-o-

"Well, at least you don't have to feel guilty anymore." murmured Kalinda a few hours later, running her tongue along Alicia's neck. "And now we have more time to be together."

"We have all the time in the world." said Alicia, kissing her lover.

The weight she had felt on her stomach for a long time, was now gone.


End file.
